Of Shuttle Bays and Memories
by Maribeliza
Summary: Yeah, yeah...me and titles suck... Think I'll call this the "Memories" series...for now... Anyway... Another glimpse of Kat and Jimmy. Forgive any spelling errors, still recovering from a car wreck and I'm fighting off a migraine. Ta


It was an unusually quiet day aboard the Normandy, and it seemed to James to have started when he woke up to find that Shepard had woken and left the cabin before him- a rare occurrence since he had moved his things into her cabin at her suggestion.

She hadn't shown up or let him know where she was by the time he finished showering, either. He was starting to worry. Upon trying both her omni-tool and Garrus' and receiving no response he frowned, pacing.

"Hey, EDI, do you know..." James started to question but paused upon hearing quiet singing filtering through the open grate in the wall. "...never mind." He rode the elevator down a floor at a time, searching each one as he tried to locate the source of the singing. He halfway noticed as he searched that he didn't see a single one of the original SR1 core group. When he finally reached the shuttle bay he found all of them, Shepard in the middle, gathered off to the side of his area, each of them holding a glass of some sort as they all listened to the beautiful sounds coming from- of all people- Commander Katniss Shepard's mouth.

_"I sing...because...I'm happy. I sing...because...because I'm free."_ Katniss sang, eyes closed, tear tracks glistening on her cheeks. She stood beside a holo-picture of a woman that James didn't recognize. _"His eye...is on...the sparrow...and I know...He watches me."_ She drew out the last note as long as she could, letting it end right at James reached the group. He started to speak but Liara caught his gaze and shook her head. "That was Ash's favorite song- she told me when I asked her...just a couple of days before Virmire..." Katniss turned to the picture as she opened her eyes.

"She..." Kaidan started, but had to clear his throat. He looked the most pained of all of them. Joker brought up a hand and squeezed the Major's shoulder, earning him a grateful glance. "She loved to hear you sing it, Shepard...told me it reminded her of going to Mass when she was a kid."

"I caught her playing a recording of it one of the times her sister called." Garrus piped up.l" She wouldn't believe her that it was you." They all chuckled softly, Shepard blushing.

"Yeah, well...there isn't much call for singing on the battlefield. Besides, it'd blow my cover." she excused, rubbing at the back of her neck.

"I dunno about that, Shepard." Joker said with a hint of a grin. "I remember you trying to teach Wrex that old song you and I found on the old channels during the fight on Noveria." They all laughed.

"The look Ash gave you while you were singing..." Kaidan said, a tired smile on his lips.

"Dun dun dun...another one bites the dust!" Katniss laughed. "Then she started singing _with_ me."

"She couldn't believe someone else knew it." he said, shaking his head as he laughed. "She'd found it not long before she was assigned to the 212 on Eden Prime."

"She was definitely unique. One minute she was comforting her squad-mate's husband and the next she was screaming at that bosh'tet who was trying to keep her body from him." Tali spoke up, provoking another bout of laughter.

"She came to see me after you did, Shepard, after what happened on Noveria." Liara said, earning a surprised look from her. "She hugged me and said that she did not know if Asari heaven was the same as Human heaven, but she was sure she had made it there and that I would see her again someday."

"Yeah, she told me about that after." Kaidan said. "She said you and Tali reminded her of her sisters. She left me a note on my bunk before we dropped on Virmire...told me to look out for you two if things went sideways..."

"Yeah, she said that to me, too." Joker said.

"She told me I'd better keep an eye on you, too, Kaidan." Katniss said. Kaidan raised an eyebrow at that. "She said _"Don't let the LT do anything stupid if this goes bad, Skipper. If he follows me up there I'm going to come back and haunt your ass, Ma'am."_" He shook his head and smiled at the holo.

"Sounds like a hell of a woman." James piped up. Everyone turned to look at him where he leaned against his tent. Katniss smiled.

"She was. She'd have liked you, James." She sighed. "Ash...hard to believe it's been four years today." The other nodded and fell quiet. James moved to stand beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder as fresh tears started down her cheeks.

"To Ash..." Kaidan broke the silence, lifting his glass. "You were one hell of a marine. We'll kick some Reaper ass for you, Chief."

"Ash." the others all echoed, lifting their own glasses before they all downed their drinks- Tali sucking hers through her "emergency induction port."

"Lola..." James said after a moment, leaning his head down to whisper a steam of Spanish in her ear. Katniss' eyes went wide as her glass slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor. The others looked at the pair curiously.

"Are..." Katniss stammered, turning to look at him just as he pulled something from his pocket and pressed it into her hand. "Dios mio!" She stared at the small box in her palm. The others all gasped, even Liara. "I..."

"Marry me, Kat...we'll name the first girl after her." he said, one corner of his mouth curling in a nervous smile. Kaidan laughed quietly.

"Ash would kill you if you didn't say yes to _that_, Shepard." he teased, a faint smile on his lips. She just stood there, staring at the box, for a moment before Joker rolled his eye and stood up, swearing in French as he moved to her and- to everyone's surprise- pulled off his hat and smacked her upside the head with it. She blinked and shook herself slightly as the pilot sat back down, putting his hat back on.

"Well? Open it, woman!" Garrus ordered, his mandibles spread in a grin. Katniss stuck out her tongue at him but finally opened the box. A titanium band with a single fiery-orange stone set into it lay threaded on a dog-tag chain.

"So it wouldn't get caught on anything or catch light and give you away..." James said with a shrug at her curious look. She smiled in understanding. "Ah...kinda need an answer, Kat..." He shifted nervously. After a moment she lifted the chain from the box and draped it around her neck, laughing as he whooped joyfully and pulled her into his arms as the others cheered.

"Kaidan's right. Ash _would_ kill me if I didn't say yes to that." she teased before kissing him.


End file.
